Bears’ clunky offense sputters early, comes back late, and watches in despair as defense gives up Hail Mary

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I can’t tell you how long I’ve stared at a blank screen with a blinking cursor just looking for the right words to say after the Bears’ heartbreaking, 18-15 loss to the Washington Commanders on Sunday. And since I don’t have them yet, I’m just going to shoot from the hip.

There is a 24-hour rule in professional football that allows players a window to think about the game they just played before turning the page and focusing on the next one.

That’s fine, in principle, for players, coaches and all personnel involved in the football operations of the organization. But for fans, that’s not always the case. Often, these tough losses linger for far longer than they should.

I fancy myself an analyst who is able to separate facts from feelings, but that doesn’t make it an easy job. And as of right now, I am still feeling the effects of the gut punch that was the Hail Mary from hell.

If given the choice in some alternate reality of time control, I’d much rather the Bears had taken their pounding and lost 12-0 than make their comeback, toy with our emotions, and drop a heartbreaker on a fluke Hail Mary conversion.

Those who objectively watched the game from start to finish know the Bears did not play well and should not have won the game. Had the Bears been in control for all four quarters and then lost by a heave and a prayer, that would have hurt much worse.

But truth be told, by halftime I was not expecting a win, nor did I feel good about the Bears’ season moving forward. I posted this on X:

I posted it before the comeback, and I still feel the same way after the comeback.

I’ve seen signs of improvement from Caleb Williams throughout the season. I’ve also seen peaks and valleys like a stock report. Yesterday, for much of the game, was a valley for him. He had some awful throws. And although the offensive line was bad for a lot of the game, Williams did hold on to the ball for far too long in other situations. And as I noted on X, I would love to see those All 22s because I’m curious if his receivers were unable to get open, or if Williams was just not seeing them.

But despite the improvement that Williams has shown, the offense as a whole is not following along with him.

Yes, we can all be excited about his four-touchdown game in London. We can be pleased with his dismantling of the Carolina Panthers the week before. But by and large, the offense — particularly against good defenses — has looked atrocious.

This is not a “throwaway” year. Sure, it’s highly unlikely that this team magically finds its offensive switch and makes a deep playoff run this year. But at the same time, they’re not tanking. Which means the Bears are squarely in football hell.

At least they’re pointed in the right direction, even if the destination is still quite a ways out.

I posted an emotional prediction on X after the game on Sunday in which I suggested the Bears will lose at least one of their next two games (against the Cardinals and Patriots) and then get beaten badly by their divisional opponents when the back half of the season commences. I have them winning 7 or 8 games this year — and they already have 4.

I have softened a little on that prediction. For starters, I’m not expecting them to lose to either the Cardinals or Patriots. I think they can — and should — win them both. I’m just saying it would not surprise me in the least bit if they did lose one or both.

As for the divisional slate, I think there is a very real possibility that they finish with a 2-4 record in those games, if not worse.

I know that the Bears have played the Lions close before. But I think the Lions have a well-oiled machine this year and I think they’re headed for the Super Bowl.

As for the Packers, I truly believe they are overrated. But unfortunately, they still have the mental edge over the Bears.

And while I expected the Vikings to be a bad team this year, they’ve certainly shown otherwise. Both Sam Darnold and the Vikings defense have cooled off after a red hot start to the year. So, it’s still entirely possible that they crater and drop out of the playoff picture at some point this year. But for now, they’re a very real competitor against whom the Bears will have to bring their A-game.

As a Bears fan, of course I’m going to keep watching their games this year. One loss on an October Sunday to make them 4-3 is not going to push me off the ledge. But it also is discouraging how much the offense continues to struggle, how banged up and ineffective the offensive line is, and how the Bears have yet to record a convincing win against a formidable opponent.

Unfortunately, even if the Bears win their next two games to move to 6-3, we still won’t have an answer to whether they’re any good or not against good opponents, for the Cardinals and Patriots are anything but that.

Our only hope is that over the next two weeks, the offense finds a way to start games better and finish strong, playing a complete offensive game for 60 minutes. Because if not, I guarantee the Packers will be looking to punch the Bears in the mouth on November 17.